This Small Business Innovation Research Phase II project aims to build, test and perfect a device that will clean the exhaust gases of a diesel engine. The primary pollutants emitted by diesel engines are nitric oxide (NOx), carbon monoxide (CO), volatile organic compounds (VOC's), and dry particulate matter (DPM, soot). The CHA Corporation has completed its SBIR Phase I investigation of a novel microwave-based device to control these unwanted by-products. The device captures the DPM in a filter and oxidizes the captured DPM using NOx, oxygen and microwave energy. The remaining NOx is converted to nitrogen and carbon dioxide using a reducing catalyst and a reducing agent such as hexane or diesel fuel in the presence of low level microwave energy. Simultaneously any CO and VOC materials are oxidized to carbon dioxide and water using an oxidizing catalyst in the presence of low level microwave energy. Our work shows that a commercially available automotive catalyst such as Prototech PRO-VOC 7 gives satisfactory results. This Phase II proposal offers an expansion of the Phase I work including the fabrication of a prototype device and an extensive testing and design refinement program. The results of this work will be a working tested prototype of the device. There is tremendous need for economical and practical NOx control devices to continue the operation of stationary diesel engines and other fuel based internal combustion engines. This segment represents a potential market exceeding one billion dollars for NOx control devices. This award is supported by the Small Business Innovation Research Program and the Experimental Program to Stimulate Competitive Research (EPSCoR). ***
